Rate My Professor Kate Bryant

Dr. Kate Bryant is a Senior Lecturer and Associate Dean (Learning and Teaching) in the School of Environmental and Conservation Sciences at Murdoch University. She holds a BSc (Hons) and PhD, with research specializations in wildlife biology, population biology, ecology, evolutionary biology, and conservation. Bryant coordinates the BIO376 Wildlife Biology unit and leads practical field monitoring initiatives, including student-led studies on quendas (Isoodon obesulus fusciventer), a native marsupial, to support campus biodiversity management. Her work emphasizes evidence-based approaches to wildlife monitoring and management in urban and terrestrial environments.

Bryant's research focuses on Australian mammal conservation, including endangered species such as the numbat (Myrmecobius fasciatus) and woylie (Bettongia penicillata ogilbyi), optimizing camera trap methodologies for detection and individual identification, and assessing pet cat (Felis catus) predation on wildlife. Notable publications include "Community attitudes and practices of urban residents regarding predation by pet cats on wildlife: an international comparison" (2016), "Factors determining the home ranges of pet cats: A meta-analysis" (2016), "Assessing the effectiveness of the Birdsbesafe anti-predation collar cover in reducing predation on wildlife by pet cats in Western Australia" (2015), "Spot the difference: optimising camera trap use to detect and identify individuals of a medium-sized carnivorous marsupial" (2024), and early contributions such as "Opportunistic breeding in the polyandrous honey possum, Tarsipes rostratus" (2000). She serves as Associate Editor for Pacific Conservation Biology, with keywords encompassing mammals, marsupials, conservation, population biology, and evolution. Bryant has supervised doctoral and honours theses on topics including genetic and morphological variation in small mammals, habitat preferences, survey methods for population estimates, and metapopulation dynamics of quendas. Her publications have accumulated nearly 500 citations.